Rail brake

ABSTRACT

In a rail brake wherein a rubber rail section is brought into contact with the rolling wheel of a car, the rubber section is so profiled that it increases in thickness from the top to the bottom whereby as the weight of the wheel thereon increases a greater volume of the rubber is brought into play with each increasing increment of penetration of the rubber by the wheel.

United States Patent [72] Inventor Franz Preinfalk Lagenfeld, Germany[21] Appl. No. 886,051 [22] Filed Dec. 17, 1969 [45] Patented Jan. 11,1972 [73] Assignee August Thyssen-Hutte Aktiengesellschaft [32] PriorityDec. 19, 1968 [33] Germany [31] P 18 15 615.5

[54] RAIL BRAKE 10 Claims, 7 Drawing Figs.

[52] U.S. Cl 188/62,

188/32 [51] Int. Cl B6lk 7/02 [50] Field of Search 188/5, 32,

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,439,778 4/1969 Garbers eta1. 188/62 Primary ExaminerDuane A. Reger Att0rneyBurgess, Dinklage &Sprung ABSTRACT: In a rail brake wherein a rubber rail section isbrought into contact with the rolling wheel ofa car, the rubber sectionis so profiled that it increases in thickness from the top to the bottomwhereby as the weight of the wheel thereon increases a greater volume ofthe rubber is brought into play with each increasing increment ofpenetration of the rubber by the wheel.

PATENTEB JAN! 1 I972 3,633,710

SHEET 2 BF 2 Fig.5

Fig.5

Inventor: Z kl/kw am RAIL BRAKE Rail brakes having at least one brakebody made of rubberelastic material mounted on a solid support andextending in the direction of the track are known. The brake body isconstructed in the form of a rail and has on its top a running surfacefor the wheels to be braked, which runs in the direction of the mainrail.

In these brakes at least one and preferably both rails of a track arereplaced along a certain length with rubber rails which form the brakebodies. The rubber rails are fixedly disposed on a suitable supportcapable of bearing a load. They are variable in height and can be setinto two different positions relative to the main section of track. Inthe braking position, the rubber rails are lifted, and in the nonbrakingor freewheeling position, the rubber rails are lowered.

When the rubber rails are in the braking position, the treads of thewheels of an oncoming car roll on the rubber rails, which take on theentire weight of the car. Depending on the weight of the car, the wheelssink into the elastic rubber brake body to a greater or lesser depth,and the kinetic energy of the car is transformed at least partially intowork--i.e., kneading the rubber, so that the car is retarded as it rollsover the rubber rails.

In the freewheeling position, the rubber rails are lowered to such anextent thatthe wheels of an oncoming car have no contact with the rubberrails. The flanges of the wheels roll on adjacent guiding rails whichare provided alongside the rubber rails and consist of steel shapes. Nobraking, therefore, takes place when the rubber tracks are in thelowered position.

In brakes of this kind, the rubber rails consist of approximately squareprofiles with flat tops. In these brakes it has been found in practicethat the braking action on light cars is slighter than it is on heavycars. Assuming that the initial speeds are equal, therefore, a greaterbrake length is required for a light car than for a heavy car to producea particular final speed. In order to effectively brake light cars,therefore, it has been found necessary to make the length of the brakemuch longer than is necessary for the braking of heavy cars. For spacereasons this often leads to difficulties, and it is, of course,uneconomical.

THIS INVENTION This invention is an improved rail brake of this typeadapted to retard the motion of quite light cars while at the same timeeffectively retarding the motion of heavy cars.

According to this invention, in a rail brake having at least one brakingbody of rubberlike elastic material mounted on a solid support andextending in the direction of the track, which body is constructed as arail section and has on its top a running surface for the wheels to bebraked, which section is straight in the direction of the main rails;the cross section of the brake body increases from the running surfacetoward the support. In this manner an easier initial deformability ofthe brake body is achieved with respect to the area of the depth ofpenetration of light cars, while at the same time the rail brake canquite readily accommodate very heavy cars.

The cross-sectional increase in area of the brake body from the runningsurface to the support can, according to one embodiment of theinvention, be brought about by tilting the running surface of the brakebody slightly toward the outside of the track. It is also possible,however, to provide the running surface of the brake body withlongitudinal grooves. In another embodiment, the running surface can beprovided with notches running straight across or at an angle. It isespecially advantageous to combine these features.

If the running surface of the brake body has a slight tilt toward theoutside of the track, the tilt should preferably amount to toAlternatively, the running surface can be rounded or crowned.

For the support of the easily deformable upper portion of the brake bodyit is desirable for the width of the brake body to increase from therunning surface toward the foot. The side averted from the track can beinclined preferably 10 to from the vertical.

To prevent the easily deformable portion of the brake body from beingexcessively deformed or even destroyed by the passage of a very heavycar, the difference in height between the running surface of the brakebody and that of a laterally disposed guiding rail for the flange of thewheel is such, when the brake body is in the braking position, that whena heavy car is being braked the flange of the wheel remains in contactwith the guiding rail. The guiding rail thus limits the depth ofpenetration of the wheels.

THE DRAWINGS FIGS 1 to 4 show four different brake body designs, partlyin cross section;

FIG. 5 is a section through a rail brake with an unretarded wheelrunning thereover;

FIG. 6 shows a section through a rail brake when the wheel of a lightcar is being braked; and

FIG. 7 shows a section through a rail brake that is braking a wheel of aheavy car.

DISCUSSION Referring to FIG. I, a brake body la consists of a rail ofrubber which is vulcanized onto a flat steel bar 2. Alternatively, or inconjunction therewith, member 2 can be grooved or otherwise shaped toaccommodate the rubber section. The running surface 3 forms with thehorizontal line 4 an angle a amounting to between 5 and 20. The lateralsurface 5 forms with the perpendicular line 6 an angle B amounting toabout 10 to 30. The other lateral surface 7 is practicallyperpendicular.

Side 7 faces the center of the track when the system is installed, i.e.,it faces the flange of the wheel being braked.

In FIG. 2, a brake body lb consists of rubber-elastic material and hasan approximately rectangular profile. The running surface 10 is providedwith a series of notches l l. The notches 11 are preferably at to thelongitudinal edge, though they can also be at a lower angle. The sidesurfaces 8 and 9 are substantially perpendicular.

In the case of the brake body 10 shown in FIG. 3, the side surfaces 8and 9 are disposed perpendicularly. The running surface 12 is providedwith a series of longitudinal grooves 13.

In the brake body Id represented in FIG. 4, the profile is substantiallythe same as in FIG. 1, that is, the running surface 1d of the brake bodyhas a slight slope and is also provided with longitudinal grooves 13 andcross notches 11. It resembles the tread of an auto tire.

In the rail brake represented in FIG. 5, the brake body la is in thelowered position. The profile of the brake body is substantially thesame as in FIG. 1, although the running surface is slightly rounded, asindicated by the chord 24. The tread of wheel 14 has no contact with thebrake body In. Between the tread of the wheel 13 and the running surfaceof the brake body there is a gap 19. The wheel flange 17 rolls on thefoot 18 of a guiding rail 15 disposed laterally, which is mounted on asupport 16.

In FIG. 6 the brake body In is shown in the raised position relative tothe guiding. The rail brake can be raised to establish contact, or theguiding rail can be lowered. The tread of the wheel 14 of a light carrolling on the running surface of the brake body lb causes lateralbulges 21 and 22 to form. The wheel flange 17 is separated from the foot18 of the guiding rail 15 by a gap 20. The entire weight of the carwheel thus bears upon the brake body la.

In FIG. 7 the brake body 1a is represented in the same raised positionas in FIG. 6. In this case, however, the braking of a heavier car isrepresented. The tread 14 of a wheel runs on the running surface of abrake body la and penetrates deeply into it. This produces great lateralbulges 22 and 23. At the same time the wheel flange l7 bears against thefoot 18 of the guiding rail 15. The guiding rail thus receives, at acertain axle loading, a limited portion of the weight thereby limitingthe depth of penetration and preventing an excessive deformation of thebrake body. The undeformed profile of the brake body 1a is representedin FIGS. 6 and 7 by a broken line 25.

lclaim:

l. in a rail brake comprising a brake body and a rigid support carryingsaid brake body, said brake body having a running surface extending inthe direction of advance of a rolling wheel of a vehicle riding thereonwhereby the advance of said wheel is retarded when said running surfaceis brought into contact with said wheel, the improvement which comprisesusing as said brake body running surface an elastic material profiled soas to increase in mass from the surface adjacent said wheel toward saidrigid support.

2. The rail brake of claim 1 wherein said running surface has a slightslope toward the side away from the center of the track.

3. The rail brake of claim 1 wherein said running surface is providedwith longitudinal grooves.

4. The rail brake of claim 1 wherein said running surface is providedwith notches approximately perpendicular to the length thereof.

5. The rail brake of claim 2 wherein said slope is about 5 to 6. Therail brake of claim 1 wherein said running surface is slightly rounded.

7. The rail brake of claim 1 wherein the width of said brake bodyincreases from said running surface toward said rigid support.

8. The rail brake of claim 7 wherein the side of said brake body awayfrom the middle of the track is inclined 10 to 30 from the vertical.

9. The rail brake of claim I wherein the difference in height betweensaid running surface and a laterally disposed guiding rail for theflange of said wheel being braked is such, in the braking position, withthe wheel of a heavy car the wheel flange remains in contact with saidguiding rail.

10. The rail brake of claim I wherein said running surface is providedwith notches running at a lower angle than to the length of the brake.

1. In a rail brake comprising a brake body and a rigid support carryingsaid brake body, said brake body having a running surface extending inthe direction of advance of a rolling wheel of a vehicle riding thereonwhereby the advance of said wheel is retarded when said running surfaceis brought into contact with said wheel, the improvement which comprisesusing as said brake body running surface an elastic material profiled soas to increase in mass from the surface adjacent said wheel toward saidrigid support.
 2. The rail brake of claim 1 wherein said running surfacehas a slight slope toward the side away from the center of the track. 3.The rail brake of claim 1 wherein said running surface is provided withlongitudinal grooves.
 4. The rail brake of claim 1 wherein said runningsurface is provided with notches approximately perpendicular to thelength thereof.
 5. The rail brake of claim 2 wherein said slope is about5* to 20*.
 6. The rail brake of claim 1 wherein said running surface isslightly rounded.
 7. The rail brake of claim 1 wherein the width of saidbrake body increases from said running surface toward said rigidsupport.
 8. The rail brake of claim 7 wherein the side of said brakebody away from the middle of the track is inclined 10* to 30* from thevertical.
 9. The rail brake of claim 1 wherein the difference in heightbetween said running surface and a laterally disposed guiding rail forthe flange of said wheel being braked is such, in the braking position,with the wheel of a heavy car the wheel flange remains in contact withsaid guiding rail.
 10. The rail brake of claim 1 wherein said runningsurface is provided with notches running at a lower angle than 90* tothe length of the brake.